I’ve been tempted myself. Scrap metal is worth enough that I could probably unload my two BMWs for enough money to get a single, working car to play with…or maybe to be able to afford to do something with that ’32 Chevy engine that I haven’t picked up yet.

But my cars are piles of crap (unless you want them, in which case they’re a screaming steal at $1,000 for the pair). There are things worth saving headed for the crusher. Sometimes, a collector’s just had enough and decides he’s never going to get around to them. Sometimes, it’s not by choice.

We heard from auctioneer Yvette VanDerBrink recently, who’s one of those on the front lines, standing between cars and the crusher:

The Wayne Anderson Story

The old car hobby has been brought to attention by the impact of high iron prices on the number of older cars that are falling to the fate of the crusher. These cars have been asleep in a rusty slumber for years, and only recently awakened by the sound of the loader, and orders from local officials.

Many old cars are also falling to state or county ordinances, city expansion and people that call them a “nuisance,” “public eyesore,” or “habitat for wild animals,” and being destroyed by the order of government officials.

One such is the Wayne Anderson collection. Wayne is a private, quiet man who loves his Mopars. This veteran to our country has been vilified by the county of Minnehaha and ordered to clean up his property, or they would take over, crush everything, and bill him an estimated $34,000.

This battle has been ongoing for four years. Mr. Anderson argued that they were collectible. The county merely called it a “declared public nuisance,” and clean it up, or they will. His battle was altered by the unfortunate death of his lawyer. Recorded in the county minutes, Commissioner Kolby suggested to him to that he call “lil Nordstrom’s Gal.”

Yvette had known Wayne as a customer of her auctions for the past 6 years and never put the stories on the TV and paper to the face–Wayne was never interviewed, just the county and state. He asked for help, and would she talk to the state and county?

Yvette met with Mr. Anderson and looked over the cars. To her surprise were many finned Mopars, including several Hemi cars. One car retrieved from the trees was a complete Chrysler 300 convertible. This family car would have fallen to the county and the crusher.

VanDerBrink Auctions negotiated a deal with the county to oversee the cleaning process, and is also allowed to have an auction of the collectible cars, along with some late model drivers, on September 15, 2007 at 10:30 at the location outside Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The property is to be cleaned up by September 30, 2007.